ST. LUCIA’S multiple “Sport’s woman of the year, “Levern Spencer, gave her best ever result at the finals of any senior global event, when she placed fifth at the 2016 World Indoor Championships held in Portland, Oregon on Sunday. The event was won by Vashti Cunningham.
Spencer, who has been the CARICOM’s leading female high jumper for some time now, had first time clearances at 1.84 metres,1.89 metres and 1.93 metres before missing out at 1.96 metres.
Cunningham became the youngest ever women’s winner at the world indoor championships.
Eight women attempted 1.96 metres and four went clear but only the 18-year-old Cunningham, jumping last of the 11 women in the straight final, much to the delight of the local crowd, went over at the first time of asking, just as the Las Vegas school girl had done at her three previous heights: 1.84 metres, 1.89 metres and 1.93 metres.
She was soon joined by Poland’s defending champion Kamila Lickwinko and Spain’s two-time European champion Ruth Beitia, who went over on their second attempts while Lithuania’s AirinePalsyte needed all three of her attempts to progress.
However, when the bar went up to 1.99 metres none of the four women could go any higher.
At the other end of the age spectrum from the prodigious 2016 champion, Beitia – aged 36 and more than twice Cunningham’s age – took the silver medal by virtue of not having any failures prior to 1.96 metres and became the oldest ever medalist in this event.
The 2014 joint-winner Lichwinko had to settle for third this time after failures at both 1.84m and 1.93 metres proved to be costly, while Palsyte finished out of the medals in fourth.
Spencer, who ended last season ranked in the world’s top 10, came into this competition with the joint 6th best jump in the world during this year’s indoor season, and after this competition which effectively puts closure to the indoor season, she remains the world’s No.6 ranked female high jumper.
The world class high jumper who was earlier this year crowned St. Lucia’s “Sportswoman of the year” for a record 13th time, will be heading back to her training base in Athens Georgia, where she will continue her preparation for the outdoor season, but more importantly, the Summer Olympics in Rio, Brazil.